Chapter Text
Life, at times, is filled with ups and downs. In some lives, life is simply downs. Jinyoung realized that on the eve of his 13th birthday.
“Get out of the school you stupid homo!”
“You should go get that fixed. I heard gay is contagious!”
“Ew, he touched me. I don’t want to date you, you queer!”
The taunts had followed him like an obsessed lover. On the eve of his 13th birthday his best friend, whom had been scared of being outed, outed him. He was hit with the harsh reality of how cruel kids could be.
Soon, the taunts became physical. Fights were apart of his daily routine, and though he never went down without a fight, it was hard to take on 3 to 5 boys at once. Jinyoung wasn’t a fighter, he never had been. His strength had always been his mind.
“Can he be fixed?”
“He’s such a worthless son.”
“He’s not my brother!”
His home life was no better. His father no longer looked at him, and it hurt when his mother turned her eyes on him. The pity, the sorrow, the look of failure. She had failed as a mother, he had failed as a son. His sisters were no different.
Shortly after his 16th birthday, they sent him away. They didn’t care where he went, they simply wanted him gone. He was the worthless son, the biggest disappointment. Jinyoung knew what they wanted so he gave it to them. He never made it to his destination, he got off the bus midway. They wanted him gone so he disappeared.
Today, he turned 17. He had no home, no job, and an empty stomach. He had applied everywhere in the area but no organization would hire him without an address. He had considered lying about his residency, but he worried about background checks.
Rain fell on him as he sat in the empty alleyway. It was cold, his skin ice, and his jacket had been stolen long ago. Most of the clothes he had brought with him had.
He no longer had a reason to live, so why should he bother?
“Who the hell is this? Move kid.” A gruff voice spoke from above him.
Lifting his head to the man now standing in front of him, he wondered why he should be the one to move. He was there first. He wasn’t bothering anyone, he wasn’t even visible from the main street. Why was this man bothering him?
“I don’t have to move for you.” He had no strength to stand anyway. He hadn’t eaten anything substantial in almost 24 hours.
A deep pitched laughter sounded behind the man and Jinyoungs eyes shifted again. The second man was nowhere near as big as the man in front of him, but there was something more intimidating about him. There was fire behind that carefree laugh.
“Hear that Beomseok, he doesn’t have to move for you.”
The gruff man, Beomseok, growled before reaching in his pocket and shoving it in Jinyoungs face. It took a full 5 seconds to realize it was a gun. Jinyoung stared into the muzzle. Was today the day he died? It would be the perfect gift. His life was no longer worth living.
“Get the fuck out of this alleyway.” Beomseok hissed.
“Boss isn’t going to like this.” The man singsonged behind. He scratched the back of his head in a nonchalant way and his eyes shifted to the door of the building Jinyong leaned against. It would seem they were waiting for someone.
“I’m not in the way. I’m not blocking whoever you’re waiting for. So leave me alone.”
Warning bells rang in Jinyoung's head as the man cocked his gun. He wondered if his parents would be informed when he died. Somehow, he had managed to keep his ID so the authorities would probably be able to identify his body.
“I’ll give you 5 seconds to remove yourself from this alleyway.”
5 seconds left to live was more than enough.
“5.”
He looked at the gun.
“4.”
He looked at the man standing behind.
“3”
He looked up at the gruff man.
“2.”
He leaned his head back, hitting the brick wall.
“1.”
Why did it have to rain on a day like today?
The sound of the door slamming open captured the attention of the 3 men. The gruff man froze, hand still on the trigger, while the man behind straightened his posture.
“Boss.” Both men greeted, voiced dripping with the utmost respect. Whoever had entered the alleyway demanded their respect. The air had shifted.
Jinyoung's head rolled to the side. Two new frames stood at the open door but it was obvious who the important one was. He stood, back straight, cigarette hanging from his lips. His umbrella was held by the man at his side and he slowly shifted until his gaze met the man standing at the back.
“What’s going on here, Jackson?” The man's voice was soft, but firm. His back stood straight as he took in the view. His looks were only intensified by the high end suit and dress shoes.
“Beomseok was going to shoot an innocent.” Jackson spoke in a clear voice. The carefree aura gone, replaced with something. Something… Jinyoung couldn’t place.
“We don’t know if he's an innocent or not.” Beomseok defended, his finger never leaving the trigger. “For all we know he was a spy sent to keep tabs on you, sir.”
The man stood for a moment before taking slow steps. He sent a slow nod to Jackson who smiled briefly before stoning his face.
Jinyoung watched in fascination as the man with the umbrella followed his every move, and how Beomseok shifted to make room.
Bending his knees, the strange man met Jinyoung at eye level. The look in his eyes mirrored Jacksons. They had a tenderness to them but the fire behind it shined brighter. Jinyoung felt that he should be scared of the man crouched in front of him, he should show him the respect that he demanded just by stepping into the alleyway.
“Are you a spy?” The man spoke quietly, his head tilting in curiosity. Slowly, he removed the cigarette from his mouth and threw it at the foot of Beomseok to stomp out. “Do you know who I am?”
Jinyoung blinked at the question. Was he supposed too? He supposed that he could lie, say that he did so he could get shot, but something about the man made Jinyoung want to tell the truth. He didn’t want to lie to him.
“No.”
“He’s lying.” Beomseok voice spoke, loud and almost pleading. Jinyoung didn’t know why the man was pleading. “What other reason would he have to be sitting here?”
Jinyoung looked up to the gruff man before looking back at the man in front of him. Who was this man who had Beomseok, a man 3 times his size, nearly trembling in his shoes?
The man blinked slowly before a small smile formed on his lips. “May I ask your name?”
His eyes remained steadily connected to Jinyoung. Gears twisted in every which way as the stranger asked the question. Warning signs, sirens, alarms, and panic alerts sounded loud in his brain. Something told him not to give him anything that would help the man find him in the future, but Jinyoung would push those signs away. He had no way of getting out of this situation and he didn’t even know if he wanted to.
“Jinyoung.”
“Do you have a last name?”
“Park.”
The man laughed, his shoulders shaking as his eyes crinkled in glee. “Park Jinyoung? A fine name.”
The gruff man bristled at their side “Boss, you can’t be-”
“I believe I was talking to Mr. Park.” Jinyoung felt dread as the man’s smile dropped and turned to look at Beomseok. The feeling of intimidation came back ten fold. He was grateful that he wasn’t in Beomseoks shoes. “Should I remind you the definition of respect?”
“No Boss.” Beomseok gulped, sending a quick glare to Jinyoung before looking away and taking a few steps back.
“Good.” The soft tone had returned, as had the small smile as he turned back towards Jinyoung. “As I was saying, I feel as though I can trust you to tell me the truth. What are you doing sitting in this rain? You’ll catch a cold.”
Jinyoung kept his eyes steady on the older man. They looked so tender, like he genuinely cared about his health. Jinyoung wasn’t naive enough to think that. If he really cared he would have offered to cover him with an umbrella. Interestingly enough, the only two with umbrellas were Jackson and the man.
“I have nowhere else to go.” he whispered in response.
The man’s eyes narrowed as he searched for any forms of a lie, his grin turning almost maniacal. “So, you are an innocent.”
“Boss, he’s-” Beomseok tried to defend.
“We don’t shoot innocents.”
Jinyoung kept his eyes on the gaze that never left his own.
“He’s lying!”
“Kye-sang.”
The sound of a gunshot, and a body dropping to the ground would be a sound Jinyoung would never forget. He had kept his eyes on the strangers as the solid man hit the floor but he hadn’t flinched. Death wasn’t new to him. Winter had been rough.
“I told him you wouldn’t like it.” Jackson grumbled as Kye-sang holistered his gun and closed the umbrella. The rain had stopped.
“Now that that’s out of the way. We have something in common, we share a name, but you can call me JYP. How old are you?” Mr. Park spoke as though Beomseok wasn’t lying dead at his side.
“17.”
“Oh, you’re my age.” Jackson took a step forward. It unnerved him how easily he handled a dead body, being only 17, but Jinyoung paid him no mind. He refused to move his gaze away from JYP until the other moved his first. Their eyes were latched together.
“I don’t like this look in your eyes. You’re too young to look so dead.”
“I have no reason to live.” Jinyoung spoke truthfully. He had hoped Beomseok would finish what he started. After 5 years of hell, he had nothing left to offer the world. No one wanted him, he was alone.
“Let me show you a reason.” JYP spoke quietly. He reached out a hand slowly to caress Jinyoung's cheek, closely resembling a father, before pushing wet strands out of his face. “Come, join me. I’ll give you a reason to live.”
Jinyoung's eyes widened in shock. The older Park wanted to give him a reason to live? It was ridiculous, and dangerous. What sane person would take the offer after witnessing what Jinyoung had? A dead body was still lying next to him. The man in front of him hadn’t even hesitated in giving the order, the man with the umbrella hadn’t hesitated in completing the order, and the teen standing behind hadn’t even flinched. He should be scared shitless.
Yet somehow he wasn’t. The man's gaze offered a sense of security. A security that Jinyoung hadn’t even known he wanted. It felt as though this man was offering him a family.
It was completely crazy, and Jinyoung would question himself for months to come, but when JYP stood and held his hand out to take, Jinyoung grabbed hold.